air shock for the front forks

[ajaxgs]

has anybody ever tried to drill and tap the end caps on or front forks to add air and make it
a air/oil shock??? any ideas that have been tried  will our seals hold 3-4 psi ??

[NiceGuysFinishLast]

Get a set from an old honda hurricane.. direct swap, dual rotors/discs... but my understanding is that it's not a huge improvement anyway.

[werase643]

did you ever notice air shrader valves on forks....since oh....1990

i bet there is a good reason

technology is a wonderful thing

[genEricStL]

I had air shocks on my old CB900 .... they were BAD lol . Either too squishy or too hard at any given time . They also seemed to take longer to extend after a bumb , so if there were two bumps in a row the damn thing wallowed all over the road ... and the rear wheel would skip sometimes  (which was even dicier as the bike was shaft drive 'cause of the twist from the torque)
That was my first actual work on a bike ... I found regular shocks/springs from the back of a CB750 and the rear end was 100% better ... I couldn't do much about the fronts though ... someone else's problem now hehe

[Gisser]

has anybody ever tried to drill and tap the end caps on or front forks to add air and make it
a air/oil shock??? any ideas that have been tried  will our seals hold 3-4 psi ??

Common mod back in the day.  I threaded air valves into my '81 GS450 (in '82 the forks came stock that way).  I often ran 10 psi so sealing is not an issue.  Handlebars are an issue so check that there is clearance.  An angled valve would be convenient. 

Performance-wise, air offers adjustable preload--especially good for increasing fork stroke and allowing a lot of fork action (disconcerting to some) for gobbling up bumps with good initial compliance and added resistance to bottoming.  The combination of soft springing and increased seal stiction may hinder final rebound a touch (as already noted) but we're talking millimeters.  You can use air with or without springs (to reduce unsprung weight). 

See for yourself and draw your own conclusions.        

[ajaxgs]

thanks for the opinions

[The Buddha]

On my nighthawk 650 ... without air the forks were nothing ... 6-10 psi ...
My virago 1100 doesn't care ...
I cant see how it will be worse with air ... unless you're talking about seals blowing ... It may be marginal at best though ... I doubt GS forks have ever been touched by technology ... ever ... no part of a GS has been touched by technology till I sat my laptop on it. 
Cool.
Srinath.